PressClub United Kingdom · Article.
BMW Motorsport News: British Touring Car Championship 2017.
Mon Oct 02 16:41:00 CEST 2017 Press Kit
• Team BMW and West Surrey Racing (WSR) take the Manufacturer and Team titles in British Touring Car Championship. • Driver’s title right down to the wire after Colin Turkington makes an incredible comeback. • Finale marks successful return as manufacturer-supported team. • First time BMW has officially entered BTCC since 1996. • Title won in 125i M Sport.
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Chris Overall
BMW Group
Team BMW has returned to the podium in style, taking both the
Manufacturers’-Constructors’ and Teams’ titles in the 2017 British
Touring Car Championship at the weekend.
In one of the most dramatic seasons the series has ever seen,
the championship was wide open going into the final weekend of the
season, but BMW’s star driver, Colin Turkington, secured the
Manufacturers’ title for the brand in the second of the day’s races at
Brands Hatch on Sunday, October 1st. Turkington drove a
storming race, taking his 125i M Sport to victory from 15th
on the grid.
The win was enough to also take the driver’s championship right
into the last of the season’s 30 races, with Turkington 2nd
in the overall standards. However, despite overtaking five other cars
from 10th on the grid, the Irishman was involved in a
collision a third of the way through the race.
The team had done enough, though, to secure two of the three
major titles in the series – a testament to the hard work of West
Surrey Racing (WSR) and its work with BMW cars over the past decade.
As an independent, the team took the 2014 Drivers’ and Teams’
Championship with the previous generation 125i M Sport.
Graeme Grieve, CEO of BMW Group UK, said: “The BTCC is one of
the most significant race series in the UK and has a huge and
enthusiastic following. With a history of success and the continuous
support of WSR for the past decade, we were delighted to step up as a
manufacturer-supported team again after 21 years, and absolutely
thrilled to prove that we still know how to win.”
BMW UK’s financial investment in the BTCC team included the
funding of technical developments on all fronts, focused on the very
latest BMW engine technology. Completing the team line-up were former
BTCC champion Andrew Jordan and fans’ favourite Rob Collard, marking
his 10th consecutive year of driving a BMW in the BTCC, the last seven
with WSR. Both drivers finished in the top 10 drivers’ rankings,
contributing to the team’s overall success.
ENDS